Challenging The State

[Malum Argenteum]

because what i have also noticed, per a recent upload from USARK-FL, that none of the people in the FWC who are making decisions have any academic credentials or expertise to justify their positions nor do any of the animal rights people because i do, absolutely believe, that any discussion which excludes actual experts is folly - no zoologists, no ecologists, no one with any relevant degrees or expertise - just a bunch of anti-science bureaucrats - the only people in the meeting that i saw which did have creds/expertise were the USARK reps, people within the animal industry, etc

On USARK's board, there is no one with appropriate credentials to be considered well versed in conservation biology. There is one genetics PhD (their science director, whose only connection to conservation biology is one paper on island colonization by boas on which he was a secondary author), five people who are financially directly connected to the animal industry, and one person with random animal industry experience. From an objective point of view, that is a very biased panel with a very clear profit motive. This shouldn't be (and isn't) surprising, as USARK is an industry lobbying organization.

A look to FWC's website uncovers many academic connections. For example, their non-native species publication list here links to this paper (again, just one example) that lists two authors (one the lead author) from USGS, one from FWC, and five with academic affiliations.

Folks with herpetoculture interests need to do a lot better than these sorts of ad hominem claims, in my opinion.